


I've Been Sleepwalking, Been Wandering all Night

by Angelicat2



Series: Whumptober 2020 [12]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alchemy, Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Allura (Voltron), Druid Keith (Voltron), Exhaustion, Gen, Hunk (Voltron) is a Good Friend, Hurt Keith (Voltron), M/M, Near Death Experiences, POV Hunk (Voltron), Quintessence (Voltron), Quintessence-Sensitive Keith (Voltron), Scared Shiro (Voltron), Season/Series 03, Shiro (Voltron) Lives, Shiro (Voltron) in the Astral Plane, Sleep Deprivation, Sleepwalking, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:47:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,806
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28081893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angelicat2/pseuds/Angelicat2
Summary: Everything is a mess. They've lost their Black Paladin to the fight against Zarkon, they can't form Voltron, and tensions are building. However, Hunk notices that worst is Keith, who seems to be lost and in pain without Shiro.It takes months for anyone to realize that Keith's tired from more than just grief, even Keith himself.
Relationships: Allura & Coran & Hunk & Keith & Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt & Shiro, Hunk & Keith (Voltron), Keith & Shiro (Voltron), Keith & Voltron Paladins, Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Series: Whumptober 2020 [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1951774
Comments: 11
Kudos: 136
Collections: Voltron_Fanfic





	I've Been Sleepwalking, Been Wandering all Night

**Author's Note:**

> For day 23 prompts:
> 
> Exhaustion and Sleep deprivation.
> 
> Song that influenced this fic is Burning House by Cam. Ignore that this makes no sense in timeline. Either Kuron wasn't a thing or he came in much later than the alternate reality Altean thing😅
> 
> Enjoy!

Hunk sighs as he lays in his bed.

Everything is a disaster. They can't form Voltron still, Hunk and Lance are out on intense missions with the Blade, Pidge is searching for information about her dad and brother, and...oh, yeah! Shiro is missing! Their leader just poofed into nothingness, gone at the end of the fight with Zarkon. They all are devastated, even Hunk. He misses the older's leadership and his calming nature. They could really use some of it now. The Voltron coalition meetings are going nowhere. In fact, they're going the opposite direction of nowhere, but in the wrong way.

Keith.

One word. One person. One...well…

He doesn't blame him. The guy's grieving his best friend. He's the most affected by Shiro being gone. He's been out searching every system from here to who knows where to find their fallen friend. They had all helped in the beginning but they all had duties, as much as Hunk didn't like it. They needed to get the coalition up, form Voltron, continue the fight, and a whole bunch of other things Hunk does NOT want to even think about. He already feels the headache forming as he groans silently. 

It's late and he should be sleeping, but he can't. He hates this, everything falling apart so easily. He's always been the mediator of the group, but he's failing now. As soon as he tries to settle one person down, another explodes, in most cases it's Keith.

Again, he gets it, in a way. Keith is crushed. They all can see that. The older barely talks anymore, and when he does, it's in a depressed, somewhat angry tone. He's quick to jump down their throats and 98 percent of what comes from his mouth is about Shiro. 'Shiro's missing,' 'I won't give up on Shiro,' 'It's Shiro's bayard still,' and 'Shiro was the Black Lion,' are some common sayings. He's paler and clearly exhausted, deep bags under his crestfallen eyes. And Hunk knows he hasn't been eating the way he needs to. Hunk's tried to get him to eat more, but every time he does, he either finds the food untouched or Keith puking his guts up in the bathroom. 

Keith's such a mess.

Again, makes sense. If Lance were the one missing, Hunk would be distraught too. Lance and him go way back to the start of the Garrison days, forming an awesome friendship. He can't imagine not having the other around, what with his energetic and optimistic personality. He's got some of the coolest stories and can usually make Hunk laugh. He also is the one who usually samples Hunk's cooking, leaving a ton of compliments and really good critics.

He pauses his thoughts, hearing one of the doors open. It's not Hunk's, and the door can't be Lance's. The guy was dead asleep for the whole night once he fell asleep. It can't be the Alteans either, as they live in separate chambers from here. Maybe it's Pidge. He knows that the younger has yet to make it to bed, still busy searching for her family members. 

Yeah, it's probably her. Keith had gone to bed that night, something Hunk had seen himself. He usually stayed in there once he arrived, especially if he didn't start training. 

Hunk falls asleep after that, not even hearing the footsteps that lead away from the door. 

…..

Three weeks later, and they are no closer to figuring out what to do. By now, they've all but listed Shiro as M.I.A., which Keith refuses to believe. Tensions are rising up, with more shouting and anger all around. Pretty soon, someone was going to snap something hurtful. 

Sure enough, Lance blows up when they find out Shiro assigned Keith to be the leader. Like...Hunk agrees. When the heck did Shiro do that? Why hadn't he said anything? Why only tell Keith? Why not allow any of them to be the leader?

But then again, it makes complete sense after Hunk thinks for a moment. Keith is Shiro's right-hand man as the Pilot of the Red Lion. Keith's always taken charge whenever Shiro has been out of commission. Keith's instincts are on another level and he is an amazing pilot, capable of fighting a lot more than most of them can. It…

Makes absolute sense, actually. 

But Lance says something along the lines of Keith using Shiro's death to gain power or something and everything explodes and they all try the lion and Keith is the only one it'll turn on for.

So yeah...it's a mess. They can form Voltron, but they aren't working together like...at all. Lance pilots Red while Allura gets Blue. Everything keeps getting worse and worse. 

Keith looks like absolute shit. He's showing the signs of weight loss now, cheekbones a little more pointy than before. He looks even more tired than usual and his anger has all but faded into a deep sadness as if he's lost a part of himself.

Honestly, he probably has.

Hunk's never truly believed in soulmates. Like yeah, he loves the idea of them, of that perfect half. He knows the story of man (and woman) being two people together, split apart by the gods of old. He knows that people say they've found their soulmate, in a cheesy and corny way. But...seeing Keith's reactions makes him think...no, feel that soulmates are real and he's witnessing when a connection is broken. Maybe Keith's suffering from more than simply missing Shiro. 

Honestly, all it feels like is that everyone is screaming at each other for one reason or another anymore. The tension is still there, and now they've got a new enemy named Lotor. Also, his general ladies are scary as quiznak. 

He frowns as he hears the door open again.

It's not Pidge this time, for she was definitely in her room, saying she'd be looking into the interdimensional comet Lotor stole from them. It's not Lance, and definitely not Shiro. That only leaves Keith. But…

Why is he up? Has he been running rescue missions to find Shiro when all of them were asleep? It would explain the exhaustion and the fact that Keith's been drowsy during the day. Hunk frowns. Keith's never been one to love debriefings, but he's never really dozed off during any of them before.

He needs to check on the older. Making his own way out of his warm bed, he slips his yellow lion slippers on before walking to his door. Opening it, he peeks out to see that Keith is the one up. He's dressed in his grey t-shirt, black pants, and boots. His jacket is missing along with his belt. That's very unusual, since they all know Keith goes everywhere with that blade of his. The older is strolling down the hall silently, headed who knows where.

"Hey, uhhh…" Hunk says to the other, trying not to be too loud. He doesn't want to wake people up if he doesn't have to, "Where are you going, man?"

Maybe Keith doesn't hear him. He just keeps walking on. Hunk frowns before marching up to the other. He walks in front of him, watching him as he goes on. The older's eyes are open, but they are glassy. They don't even glance his way, which is kind of creepy. His gait is also different, far more zombie-like than is his usual graceful but reserved and cautious walk.

"Keith?" He waves his hand in front of Keith's nose, getting absolutely no reaction still. They both keep moving, though Keith's face looks really...blank, "Keith? Uhhh...what's going on? You okay?"

Once again, there's no reaction. He follows the other, not sure what is happening. They stroll down hall after confusing hall before appearing before the Black Lion's hangar. Hunk blinks in confusion before watching the older slip inside. He soon joins him, walking up to the lion's paw. A second later, Keith climbs up onto the lion's foot, just sitting there. His eyes still are open, and he has yet to blink.

It creeps Hunk the fuck out. He should get the others in here, but he doesn't know if he'll have time to round everybody up before...whatever is happening stops.

He backs out, making plans to gather the others tomorrow night after supper. They usually showed up.

…..

"You think what?"

Hunk sighs before he rubs his face. Yep, maybe he should have just figured out what was wrong by himself. 

"I said, I think Keith's possessed," Hunk says again. He had brought everyone besides Keith into his room roughly half an hour after Keith went into his room. The other four are looking at him as though he's crazy, "Look, I saw him walking around last night-"

"A very good reason to think he's possessed," Pidge interrupts sarcastically, looking irritated, "All of us walk around all the time here, Hunk."

"Yeah, but it was creepy," Hunk shakes his head, "Keith had this like...not there look on his fac-"

"Maybe he was in thought," Lance interrupts this time before shrugging, "He's always doing that anyway."

"Yeah, well, he wouldn't respond to me," Hunk goes on, "I called his name and even waved my hand in front of his face. He didn't even blink."

"That does sound...strange," Allura's voice is tight and Hunk's hope flares, thinking he might have an ally, "But perhaps he's just tired. I mean, Pidge wanders around like that in the morning before she has this coffee drink you guys like so much."

"That's different," Hunk frowns seriously, "He doesn't act the same-"

"Well, I'm sure none of you earthlings do!" Coran grins slightly before frowning in thought, "If I remember correctly, Number Three, you act pretty normal before your drink. And so do you, Number Two! Number One usually didn't even drink the stuff."

"Well, yeah, it can do that," Hunk scowls in frustration. He suddenly understands how hard Keith's been having it with leading the team. They won't even let him say what he's trying to, "Look, something is wrong with Keith, okay? It's a feeling."

"A feeling?" Lance scoffs, "You're sounding like mullet."

"Just try it," Hunk pleads with them, "Let's wait outside his door. He usually comes out every night about another half an hour. If he doesn't, we can forget this and do whatever we were going to, okay? I just...I think something is going on."

"You really do, don't you?" Allura asks softly, cotton candy blue eyes watching him carefully, "Alright. We'll see what happens."

"Thanks."

They step outside, waiting it out. Half an hour comes and goes with no sign of Keith. The others look ready to leave when the door opens up. They all watch as Keith walks his way out of the room, looking just as he did last time. Coran and Pidge dive out of his way when they see that he's not going to walk around them, faces curious. Like last time, they all follow him down the halls before coming upon the Black Lion's hangar. And just like last time, Keith pauses at the paw before climbing it, settling into a weird sitting position, one leg bowed under his other which sticks out. His dazed eyes stare straight forward, unblinking.

Oh man, his eyes are going to be dry later.

"I…" Pidge frowns before peeking up at the other, "Is he sleepwalking? He's not awake, that's clear."

"Sleepwalking?" Lance blinks, "Like...what you see in those videos?"

"Yeah," Pidge nods before she tilts her head, "Huh...Matt used to sleepwalk as a kid. Kids do it more often. He used to go downstairs and play video games some nights. He never did remember doing that, and our mom is the one to find out he was doing it. Confused her."

"Why is he doing this now?" Allura asks carefully, eyeing the other like she's seeing something new. She probably has never heard of sleepwalking. Do Alteans sleepwalk? Do Alteans really sleep at all?

"Stress? Low sleep? A sleep disorder? Black?"

They watch Keith for a moment, everything silent. It takes a second, but soon, Hunk hears Keith muttering softly. 

"I think he's saying something?" He whispers to the others, "What's he saying?"

"Shiro…" Comes the words from the older who just continues to stare straight forward at the black metal, "Feel...here...energy low...I know…help...for Shiro..."

Hunk's brows move down in confusion. The rest shoot him equally confused looks before gazing back at the sleeping teammate. The other sits hunched up now, hands pressing to the lion's ebony wrist. His (mostly) vacant eyes are on the same spot, right where his hands are now.

"What's he doing?" Lance whispers this time.

"I have no ide-" Allura gasps, breaking off her sentence. Hunk isn't far behind her, in total shock at the sight before them.

Keith's...glowing. That's the only way Hunk can say it. A scarlet glow covers his hands, skating down to envelop his whole body. His eyes take on a bluish hue, shining deeply like one of the lights in the castle. The light crackles off like gentle lightning, dancing its way up the lion's leg to her chest. As if energized by this, the lion turns on, flickering back and forth before her eyes burst to bright yellow.

The older frowns in his sleep before more of the red pours up to the lion, making the room even more lit up, as if the lights are on. A moment later, something flickers by Keith.

"What the…"

It's…

It's Shiro…

The older is sitting against Keith's front, resting snugly into his lap like he's born to be there. He glows purple, but they all know it is him, for they see his white bangs and undercut. He's kind of see through though. He's dressed in paladin armor, helmet long gone as his forehead rests against Keith's neck. Slowly, dark grey eyes (turned neon purple by the glow) open to look upwards.

"K-Keith…" Comes Shiro's voice, wispy and broken, like static on a t.v. The older blinks before noticing that Keith doesn't seem to notice him all, "Ke-Ke'th?"

The younger just hums slightly before muttering again.

"Wanna help...boost energy...not giving up…"

"Ke-K'th," Shiro frowns, backing up slightly, probably seeing that Keith isn't responding. They watch as his hand moves in front of the late teen, getting nothing as more red flows into Black. The older starts to look alarmed, face paling as his eyes widen. His lethargy seems to fade quickly as he reaches out to Keith. His hand sits against Keith's cheek, "St-op. You've gi-v'n eno-ugh, K-e'h!"

Keith's brow shifts slightly, but he doesn't stop. No, the glow gets even more intense. 

"Ke-ith, d'n't!" Shiro shouts out before trying to shake Keith awake. It doesn't do anything, as Keith just continues, "I'm f'ne. S-op! Co-me 'n, b'ddy! Y'u've been giv-in' too muc'."

Keith doesn't stop. Actually, if Hunk looks, he can see a streak of white slithering its way up his hair. Shiro and Allura both notice at the same time, both gasping in horror.

"What's happening!"

"Keith...he's giving his quintessence to Black to help sustain Shiro!" Hunk's stomach flips like a pancake as the princess explains, "But he's giving way too much! As I stated when you first got here, the Black Lion demands the most energy out of the five lions! If he goes on, he will die!"

As if to prove her point, more white burns it's way through ebony locks. It makes stripes in his bangs, a bit behind his ear.

"W-k' u', Keith!" Shiro shouts before pressing his hand over Keith's chest. The appendage falls through like Shiro's a ghost...no, Keith's a ghost. His form even flickers, turning a bit purple and glowy. Their eyes all widen in fright. Shiro works four times as hard, placing his hands on Keith's face, his eyes shining, "C-m' o', baby."

"We have to wake him up!" Pidge shouts before forming her bayard, "He must be subconsciously sending his quintessence. He's not even aware that he's doing it. Everybody get back from him!"

They barely jump away when she sends out her taser. As soon as it wraps around Keith's arm, she turns it on with a zap. The other yelps in surprise and pain before jolting straight awake. Thrashing, he cries out as he slips off of Black's paw, smashing his chest on her claw before hitting the ground.

His form becomes solid again, the glow suddenly gone. His hair doesn't gain more white, but the white that is there stays. He's shaking and breathing hard, eyes roaming around wildly before they focus on something above them. When Hunk looks, it's Shiro looking over the paw, face set with a smile. He slowly fades from sight.

"Shiro!" Keith screams out before jumping up. Or rather, he tries to. Hunk winces as the other falls back onto his butt, hand grabbing onto his ribs, "Sh'ro!"

"Keith," Allura attempts to speak to him. The younger doesn't pay attention to her, instead freaking out more.

"Shiro! Where's Shiro! Where are we!" He shouts before moving to stand again. His legs give out on him as he sways, looking exhausted once again, "Where...I saw him! There were stars! And he...he was there! And Black!"

"Keith," Hunk starts, getting his attention. The older turns to him, face tight, "You did see Shiro. He's in Black, man. You found him."

"We'll get him back," Pidge nods.

"Yeah," Lance agrees.

"But first, you must rest," Allura speaks up, "You've been giving your quintessence to Shiro for months now. It's why you've been so exhausted. I thought you felt different but I wasn't sure. I apologize for not figuring it out sooner, Keith."

"I…" Keith blinks owlishly, "It wasn't your fault. I didn't even know that I was doing it. So...how do we get him back?"

"Hmmm…" Coran frowns, pulling on his moustache, "We will have to make Shiro a new body. We could make an electronic one, but usually living souls don't settle well in those."

"Yeah, definitely not," Pidge winces, "Shiro didn't like his metal arm, so what makes you think he'll be any better with his whole body being that way?"

"Right," Allura nods seriously before she grimaces, "We can do one other thing, but...it's very difficult to do-"

"I'll do it!" Keith snaps in desperation, barely able to stand. But Hunk gets the feeling that Keith would do it. He'd do anything to get Shiro back.

"We can create a new body for him," Allura says after a moment of hesitation, blue eyes worried and tight, "But it's a very tricky and energy-intensive process. We will have to plan out every detail down to DNA and make sure it can sync back to Shiro's quintessence. I...I'm not sure my alchemy is advanced enough for that to work correctly."

"We have to get him back!" Keith bursts, standing somehow before leaning against the Black Lion as if to give more of his energy, "I need him back."

"I…" The princess stares for a long moment, seeming to finally see Keith. To actually see what condition he is in. If they don't get Shiro out, there will be no Keith. Hunk doesn't think it in a suicidal way. It's more like a plant robbed of the sun and left to starve to death. A very slow and devastating death. 

"Princess," Coran speaks up, gently taking her wrists into his hold, sending her an understanding look, "I understand why you are hesitant. You do not want a repeat of what caused this war."

"I just...if I do this wrong, things will become even worse," Allura nods, tears glittering in her eyes. Oh, man. Has Hunk ever seen her cry? Nope, probably not, "I have to infuse quintessence...Shiro's quintessence into the body right away. If I make a single mistake, he will be...he will not be the Shiro we know. It could be anyone's lifeforce I put there. I...we cannot. I will not be responsible for another Zarkon and Haggar."

The last part is said while she stares broken-heartedly at Keith. The other frowns before his expression stiffens as though he's been slapped. A soft noise leaves his mouth before he hunches up, looking years older, and it's not because of the newly mixed hair.

"Because I'm Galra," Keith states quietly, oh so quietly. Hunk's never ever heard him sound so small and broken before, not even right after they lost Shiro. That had just been punches and shattered screams in the training room and a need for bandages and well...nothing good. 

This physically hurts Hunk's heart now.

"No, I-" Allura protests sincerely, "That's not-"

"It is," Coran's voice makes all of them yelp slightly in confusion and horror. Like...what the fuck, Coran?

"Oh geez," Lance frowns, "You're being a little bit of a jerk there, Coran. What the fuck? Like...I get it. He's mullet and emo and all that but you can't just throw this at him because he's Galra! It's like telling me that I wouldn't be able to go to the Garrison because "Cubans are uneducated." Like...come on!"

"Yeah!" Pidge scowls, defending Keith with a stance that screams she will take Coran on, "I have just as much a chance of becoming evil if you want to go that route! I'm Italian and everyone thinks Italians all work for the Mafia! Don't even start!"

"Not cool, Coran," Hunk glares at the older, "That's like saying that because one Samoan person killed someone, that all of us will. We're not all related and neither are the Galra, man."

They expect Coran to get mad, but he merely laughs proudly. They all glance at each other, confused. Even Keith joins in as well as Allura.

"Oh, no! No, my paladins!" Coran chuckles before sobering up, "I was not saying that Keith would become Zarkon because of him being Galra. No, no, no. I'm saying that his Galra instincts could lead him down that path, though I highly doubt it will. Our Number Four has a good head on his shoulders!"

"Because he's Galra?" Allura asks this time, absolutely confused too.

"Sort of," Coran speaks, "You see, princess, this war began in the name of love! You are well aware of that."

"Yes," she nods before scowling, "Zarkon would not listen to father. His wife was sick and dying but he tricked the paladins into taking her to the quintessence field. Inside, they both died and came back changed. I don't see how this ha-"

"You know that side of the story," Coran nods before his gaze falls on Keith who scrunches up, not liking the attention, "But you never learned the biological and emotional parts. The Galra have always been the warrior type. It's in their veins, the strongest getting praise and reward. But they aren't heartless. The Galra, as hard as it is to think so now, are one of the fiercest feeling people out there in the entire universe. They feel with their souls. They hate with a fiery passion, they protect their loved ones with a steel like no other, and they love like it's their last moment. Why if I had to choose someone to be with, I'd definitely give a Galra a chance."

Coran goes silent for a moment, a reminiscent grin on his lips. Something soft is in those purple orbs of his. Everyone is startled by his statement, but no one interrupts. 

"Honestly, if you earthlings weren't so new to me, I'd have known Number Four was half-Galra much sooner," the Altean sends a cheery smirk at a stunned Keith, "You have the same passion, my boy. You tackle everything head first with a raw intuition and instinct others would do anything to have. You have strange and enduring habits, which yes, at their core, are Galra. That nuzzling thing you do is one of those, to soothe you and others. Back in my days, the Galra would often use that as their greeting between close friends and family!"

The man stops for a moment, eyes looking up at the lion sadly.

"Yes, Zarkon...he chose a horrible path," Coran sighs softly, "He chose to hurt people and do all these horrendous acts. He tricked King Alfor and all of us. But he did that for love. See, the Galra love like they are on their last breath. They don't plan for tomorrow, as they know anything can happen at any time. They throw themselves into it, some would say too fast. But here's the thing...Galra tend to mate for life, setting their sights on the one person who fits just right with their souls. That one person who is able to take the brunt of all those feelings and give them back just as much in other ways."

Like...touching. Hunk's brain retrieves every moment he's seen Shiro do that. And every single time, Keith has leaned into the touch like a flame needing oxygen. And Shiro is the one always calming Keith, keeping him mostly level. 

"The one person who cares just as much about them. The person who they can take care of and protect time and time again and who will fight for them too."

_"Shiro! Are you okay? What's wrong? Shiro!"_

_"Keith! Let's get you to the infirmary. Your shoulder is bleeding again...are you okay? How are you doing?"_

The thoughts roll through his head. Shiro and Keith are protective of each other, no doubt there. Hunk never wants to get between them when one is hurt. He's seen how that ends for the enemies. Nope, he does not want to become a decapitated corpse. Nope. Nuh uh...

"I don't think Zarkon had a chance, not really," Coran shakes his head, sighing morosely this time, "He was already gone the moment Honerva, his wife, got sick. His heart was hers and he just loved her too much to give her up. That is why I fear a repeat. Our Number Four may be earthling on the outside, but he is Galra at heart, and he's already bonded with our Number One. A Galra lover will give up everything for their mate, even their life, which nearly happened tonight."

They all become alarmed except for Keith, whose gaze stays sharp. He doesn't try to deny it at all.

"Shiro is everything to me," Keith bites out before he huffs, getting a bit agitated, "I told you. He's never given up on me, he promised and he never broke that. He's the only person who ever looked at me and saw someone worth knowing, someone worth believing in. He's the only one who has stayed so long and I...I can't imagine living without him."

"Sappy," Pidge whispers in slight awe, "I didn't think he had a sappy side…"

"He's starting to sound like me," Lance sniffles before rubbing his eyes, "Oh my quiznak, I kind of like it. What is wrong with me?"

Hunk just cries silently.

"I will try," Allura speaks up, face determined, "And I will need your help, all of you. We will have to plan every step. If we make one mistake, Shiro could come back with a missing leg or no memories or something worse."

"I'm helping," Keith starts, standing tall now without support, "How do we get him home?"

"Coran and Pidge will help with DNA sequences," Allura nods, "Because they are best with that. Hunk can help with creating the workings of the body. I know you are not the best with biological engineering, but all living things work like machines. If there are any changes needed, you will recognize it."

"Can you…" Keith pauses, face serious as he stares straight at Hunk. A second later, he sighs before stepping closer before also looking at Coran and Pidge, "Can you change a specific thing? I uhhh…"

He pauses again before letting out a small sigh.

"I shouldn't be telling you this, but I have to. Shiro deserves better and I don't want him to have to relive it," Hunk frowns. Is Keith going to try to get them to erase some of Shiro's worst memories? Because that would not end well. Even bad memories make you who you are, "But we need to change his DNA so he doesn't have his muscular disease anymore. He...I know he was still struggling with it before our fight with Zarkon. He just...never told you guys, and I get why but we can change that, give Shiro the life he should have had. I...I don't want him to suffer that way again."

Silence creeps on them before they burst in surprise. Hunk had no idea that Shiro was sick. He hid it so well? Or maybe he didn't and they were all just terrible teammates and friends. He'd have to change that.

"He was what?"

"Holy quiznak!" 

"What is this disease?" Coran asks right away, face concerned but hopeful, "If we know where it is in his DNA strand, we can remove it without harming him."

"Okay," Keith nods, "I'll help with that. I'm not completely sure, but I have some ideas."

"And Keith," Allura draws the older's attention to her, "I will need you to help create the body and transition Shiro to it. I can build it and carry him to it, but he must accept the body. You will be his best chance. We will work extensively on this, only urgent missions will come in the way. Let's go."

…..

That's what they do. They work together for the next few weeks (or movements…) making sure that Shiro will get a worthwhile body. Hunk sadly learns more about Keith than he's ever known before, from tad bits of his (not-so-great) childhood to his fears (they fucked up) to his love for Shiro (they are soulmates).

Lucky for them, Voltron is rarely called upon. They work out the kinks and issues before setting up the most important spot before the Black Lion. Allura stands on the left side of a comfortable table, Keith to the right, and the rest at the foot. Good for them, they had accounted for if Shiro's body had no arm. They'd build a new arm, one that would be unhackable and consensually placed by Shiro's choice. 

"Concrete on him," she commands strongly, "Let yourself connect with him. He has to know we are here to help. I will guard and guide you two back to us."

And then they settle down. Keith's body doesn't glow this time as they wait. Allura's voice grows strong as she takes up a gentle glow. They watch in amazement as twenty minutes later, purple lines slip out of the lion to her nose. It slides over to Allura who steps to the table.

"I need all of you to combine hands," she says without glancing at them, eyes a bright glowing blue. They look different from how Keith's had though. Said guy doesn't even look up, so focused on his task. Hunk nods, joining hands with Lance on his left and Pidge to his right. The youngest carefully takes Keith's hand at the same time Allura does, "We need a large number of quintessence to create Shiro's new body. Focus on your lions and make sure we follow the plans."

Hunk closes his eyes, calling out to his lion. The sturdy and safe aura fills him, empowering him with a deep rumble. He smiles, happy to know that he's got Yellow on his side. At the same time, he feels Green and Black join in, along with something not alive but energy nonetheless. It must be Coran and the castleship. Red and Blue hang back, obviously having a bit of trouble. That is until a fiery presence races through the connection. Red snaps to full function, a heavy but satisfied growl on her lips. At the same time, a wave of water washed over, Blue sliding in place with a joyful purr. Hunk envisions the plans, noticing all the quirks that the oldest and youngest accidentally miss. At the same time, the ocean feeling washes over them all, encouraging them to go on. The fire lights their steps every so often before flickering back to help with Black.

Quintessence funnels into the spot between them all, forming into a familiar shape. At the same time, Allura brings her and Keith's hands to the front of the quintessence blob. A few minutes go by before the princess stumbles back in exhaustion. Hunk throws open his eyes to see that Shiro is there, looking much the same as the glow goes down. His face is scrunched up in pain and anticipation, scar sharp against his nose. Each scar appears on peachy flesh, the right arm completely gone like before.His hair gains its iconic white bangs before stopping, though it's obvious to see that some of the white streaks further back into the black tuffs.

They break their circle to watch. Lucky for them, Coran came prepared, tossing a tiny blanket over Shiro's middle just as the lights fade. The glow disappears at his feet, leaving the man to lurch upright with a choked gasp. Grey eyes open before they fly wildly around the room, desperately searching for something. As soon as they move to his left, they stop in shock and gratitude. 

"K-Kei-Keith," Shiro coughs before crying out, "Keith, you found me."

"As many times as it takes," Keith says softly, so so softly. Hunk feels tears fill his eyes as he watches them. They are soulmates, "Glad to have you back, Shiro."

"I should be getting the princess to her bed," Coran speaks up, the younger Altean leaning heavily on his shoulder, yawning, "But we missed you, my boy. Everyone get some rest."

They nod as they break it up. Hunk feels his own fatigue hitting out of nowhere and he glances at Keith, wondering how he's still standing. The Red Paladin has his arm around Shiro, carefully guiding him to stand up. The older nearly faceplants, colliding his face against Keith's. Both blush a bit before Shiro stutters out what's probably an apology. Keith stands frozen for a moment before his eyes shine.

Oh quiznak...Hunk's never seen Keith cry.

Shiro looks alarmed for a moment before he gently holds onto Keith's face, wiping away the wetness before gathering the other into his arms. The younger goes easily, burying his face into the bigger's neck. The man wraps him in an awkward hug, not used to his body right then. 

Hunk leaves. It's not his to witness.


End file.
